LEI 2013 Maui Program – April 2013

On April 3, 2013, ClimbHI held its inaugural LEI Maui Program in an effort to reach out to high school students on The Valley Isle. With over 120 students from three high schools in attendance, the program was a great success. The general sentiment was that the students appreciated having a major event such as LEI on their island and that it would be a program they would absolutely be interested in participating again in years to come.

This is not to say that at first everything went as planned. With a few flight delays and a label mix-up, there were a few obstacles that needed to be overcome the day before the event. Within a few hours of the entire team arriving on Maui, however, every issue was resolved and the team went to becoming ahead of schedule. After a cocktail reception at the Westin Villas Maui and making new friends, the team turned in for the night and prepared for an eventful day ahead.

Bright and early the next morning, the students started to arrive at the Sheraton Maui. Coming from different economic and social backgrounds, the group of high school students had a great mix of personalities. The hotel tours were greatly appreciated by the students who didn’t realize that there was a multitude of jobs that make a hotel run on a daily basis. After a free lunch and dining etiquette course provided by each hotel and a few more touring opportunities, the students returned back to the Sheraton for a career fair of nearly two dozen businesses.

The ClimbHI team looks forward to returning to Maui next year and hopes to expand the LEI program to other schools across the island. We would especially like to give a big Mahalo all of the hotels and businesses that made the LEI Maui event such a great success. Aloha and a hui hou!